Citibank plunks down $70 million for failing to comply with 2012 anti-money laundering order

A $70 million fine has been assessed against one of the largest banks in the country for failing to comply with a 2012 consent order related to anti-money laundering laws, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) said Thursday.

The fine against Citibank, N.A., with $1.4 trillion in assets, was for failing to comply with the order related to Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and anti-money laundering (AML) deficiencies, the OCC said. More specifically, the agency reported, the 2012 order cited the bank for BSA violations, deficiencies in its compliance program, failing to file suspicious activity reports, and weaknesses in controls related to correspondent banking.

In assessing the fine announced Thursday (a civil money penalty), the OCC said it found that the bank has not achieved compliance with the 2012 order (from Sept. 30, 2015, to Dec. 27, 2017, the date of the latest order), “failing to complete corrective actions to address BSA/AML compliance issues as required by the order.”

The regulator said the bank has paid the fine.

OCC Assesses $70 Million Civil Money Penalty Against Citibank